Lake County wine industry subject of Wall Street Journal article

LAKE COUNTY -- Lake County wine and winegrapes recently gained national exposure in a Wall Street Journal article.

The article gives a brief history of wine production in the county - including how vineyards were ripped out during prohibition and replaced with walnuts and pears, as well as how wine quality suffered in the 1980s and '90s - before describing the strides the county wine industry made beginning in the 2000s.

The article mentions Andy Beckstoffer of Beckstoffer Vineyards and his efforts to attract higher-profile winemakers and vintners to purchase winegrapes from county vineyards.

It also mentions Gallo's recent purchase of Snows Lake Vineyards. The 2,000-acre purchase included more than 800 acres of vineyards, which was Gallo's largest acquisition in the last 10 years.

The owners and winemakers at Steele Wines, Gregory Graham Winery, Brassfield Estate Winery and others are also mentioned in the article.

To read the article, visit http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204425904578073030426070170.html.